The HOT List for 8/2

#1: Grab a great beach read! like Thou Shalt Not Dump the Skater Dude by Rosemary Graham (Penguin)

What makes this the perfect beach read? One, the "splashproof" cover, part of Penguin's cool line of waterproof paperback books. Second, the story: Pretty teen Kelsey looks like one of the girls on "The O.C.," but that doesn't mean she feels like she fits in when her newly-divorced mom moves Kelsey and her brother from Boston to California in the middle of the school year. At first, Kelsey feels like she'll never make friends, but when big shot skateboarder – and her schoolmate – C.J. Logan scopes her out as his new girlfriend, things are looking up. Until Kelsey decides that, no matter how great HE might think he is, SHE thinks C.J. is kind of a jerk. So she breaks up with him. But Mr. Wonderful can't deal with the rejection, which sets Kelsey off on a path to finding out just what a cool, smart, strong and independent girl she really is.

You say you want to do something to help save the planet? This is a small, but effective, fun and meaningful way to do it. Every time we go to the drug store, supermarket, art supply store, book store . . . pretty much anywhere we buy stuff, we're given more plastic bags, right? The Envirosax is the solution to all those plastic bags that are no friend to the environment. The cute, smartly-designed bags are made of a sturdy, lightweight, portable, waterproof material (and, of course, environmentally-friendly material), and each one holds the equivalent of two plastic shopping bags. And they're priced at a very budget-friendly $7.95 each, or $35 for a set of five. So, to recap: you can do something great for the environment, be stylish and not make a big dent in your wallet all at the same time? Score.

Yep, it's another great book from the Silver Dolphin line of craft book/kits. This time around, the Silver Dolphin folks and author Jenna Winterberg give us tricks, tips and even the supplies to totally bling our favorite gadgets, from cell phone and iPod carriers to laptop covers and your glasses case. Sequins, fabric, rhinestones, ribbons, faux fur and other fun materials are included, along with a 48-page booklet that illustrates step-by-step instructions for projects like Rockin' MP3 Socks, Hip To Be Square (Computer) Monitor Frames, In the Bag Wrist Rests and Undercover Laptop Sleeve. After all, shouldn't your gadgets be as stylin' as the rest of you??

Soup up your brain, while having fun and spending time with your loved ones (up to eight in one game). Big Brain Academy – based on the original DS game – is a series of simple brain teasers that you can play with anyone, any age (trust us, this is the perfect game for those family gatherings where you, your seven-year-old cousin and your 68-year-old grandpa try to find something you can all do together). Games that test your recognition and fast-thinking skills and memory games are tabulated to scores that you can then compare to your competitors scores, and to your own, to see how you improve from game to game. Big Brain Academy (the name comes from the cheeky idea that your brain is getting heavier the more you learn – cute, no?) also features cool graphics, quick game play, and, as we mentioned above, the chance to play with up to eight players at one time.

#5: Catch the Degrassi season finale!Degrassi: The Next Generation (Friday, 8 p.m., The N)

How will the sixth season of Degrassi end? Thankfully, not with a major cliffhanger, though there will certainly be no lack of drama! When we last left the gang, Emma and Sean were going through a maaaaaajor crisis in their relationship, and Alex had to resort to some drastic measures to try to make sure she and her mom didn't end up in a homeless shelter. In the finale, Paige finds out EXACTLY what Alex has been doing at the club, and Alex finds out exactly what her mom has been doing with the money she's worked so hard to earn. Surprisingly, it all ends rather well, but, of course, the fun is in how everyone gets there.

Love Tetris? Us, too! Which is why we were immediately addicted to this fun new online game, which is just like Tetris, but with a map of the United States and falling states that you have to line up and drop into the correct geographical spot. That's it, but simple as it might sound, it's not. When those states start falling faster and faster and you're trying to remember the difference between the shape of Illinois and Indiana, the pressure's on! And remember, we warned you . . . it's addictive.

It's early, you were up late IMing with your crush and that alarm goes off . . . you want to throw it against the wall and pull the covers up over your head, right? Well, now you can! In fact, this tennis ball alarm clock (really – it's a tennis ball with an alarm clock inside – was designed especially to be thrown against the wall, which is how you stop that incessant noise when the alarm goes off every morning. Throw it against the wall, throw in onto the floor, throw it against your closet door. It'll still work the next morning, when you can toss it against the wall again.

#8: Get a free greeting card! fromGet a free Hallmark card at Walmart.com
Free stuff. We all love it, right? Well, we recently stumbled upon a little section of the Walmart.com Website called Free Samples, where, as the name suggests, several companies offer up free samples from their product lines. The samples change frequently – ya, more free stuff! – but this week's site offers a great one we should all take advantage of: a free Hallmark greeting card! All ya gotta do is fill in your info (make sure it's cool with your parents first), be at least 13 years old (sorry, pesky rules) and you can receive a coupon for a free card from Hallmark's new Connections cards, which include funny sayings, clever photos and pop culture references (there's even a Simon Cowell card!). And don't forget to bookmark the Walmart.com site and keep checking back on what freebies they'll offer next!

More freebies (told ya, we love 'em!). When we were in fifth grade, we had to choose a state and do a big report and oral presentation on it in front of the whole class. While doing research, we discovered that you could write to the tourism organization for pretty much every state (and countries around the world), and ask them for brochures and other goodies, and they would send them to you, free of charge. That began our love of planning what our dream trips would be when we grew up, and of wallpapering our room with beautiful pictures of Hawaii, Los Angeles, the Grand Canyon and New York City. Now, thanks to the Internet, you can request such goodies (still free!) with a few clicks of the mouse. Check out Travelinformation.com to request brochures, travel guides, posters and other trip-planning goodies for your dream destinations. There's nothing better to keep you motivated for school, work, college apps and all those other tough tasks ahead than a gorgeous collage of all the places you could be adventuring to someday!

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